The Long Night
by Random0Fandom
Summary: Dreams can haunt even the strongest of warriors, especially ones taught of no weakness through emotions. However, those that can help are often the ones who suffer it as well. And maybe a bottle of whiskey


It seemed to be a quiet night on the Ghost, the crew sleeping from their adventures and run ins with the Empire. All of them were in their rooms, sleeping of their tired natures. Kanan was sleeping soundly, as was Hera, both dreaming of similar hopes: freedom and love. Zeb was currently snoring so loud, an explosion could've gone off and the crew would assume it was just him snoring. Honestly, the guy was a walking monster, but a sleeping giant as well.

This made it troublesome for the poor guy who had to share a bunk with him, but he had given up on his failed attempts to sleep. However the snoring wasn't the only thing keeping young Ezra awake, but the memories and nightmares of his parents and past experiences.

Giving up, he jumped down without waking Zeb up and made his way to the common room. He was tired, yes, but he would rather stay awake than to face his mind. Sitting on the bench, in a simple white shirt and shorts, he sat and thought about everything from his past.

Sighing, he reached down to a loose panel and gently pulled it off, revealing a secret compartment. Inside was lone bottle: a whiskey bottle. Hera hadn't found it, thank god, or else he would be a dead man. Taking out the shot glass that went with it, he set them on the table. Opening the bottle with a small pop also came with the sudden smell of strong alcohol.

Pouring a shot of the orange liquid, he did it slowly. He never really enjoyed pouring the stuff, but it was a simple stress reliever. Done, he put the bottle down and picked up the glass. Sloshing it around a little, he raised it to his lips, with it slightly stinging his nose, and downed the shot. It didn't taste too much, since this wasn't Ezra's first time drinking, but it still had a strong burn in the back of his throat.

He let it sit there, feeling the burn in his throat, and letting it settle. His hands didn't leave the bottle or the glass, but he just sat there. Not many thoughts were going through his head, making the whiskey seem so much more helpful. When the burn went away, Ezra poured himself another glass. Getting it halfway to his mouth, he heard a gasped, followed by an "Ezra." Stopping and looking over, he saw Sabine standing there, in a grey tank top and black sweats.

"Hey Sabine," Ezra had lost his shock for getting caught, mainly since it wasn't Hera, but he was still a little confused on why she is up. "Why are you up so late?"

Sabine seemed to hesitate in her answer, before shooting back her own remark, "Never mind me, why are you up so late? And with Alcohol! Hera will kill you."

"Don't worry Sabine," Ezra said, "I've had this bottle for a while. Hera won't ever find it."

"But you shouldn't be drinking it at all!" Sabine fired at him, to which he just shrugged.

"It helps me calm down. I can't sleep." Ezra sounded a bit defeated when he talked, something Sabine picked up on.

"Why not?" She wasn't as mad as she originally was, now curious on why he can't sleep.

"I always see them." Ezra answered, taking a second shot of the stuff. To Sabine's surprise, he didn't flinch back at the taste like a newbie. He was experienced by the looks, making Sabine calm down. It wasn't his first time drinking, which wasn't good, but at least he wasn't spitting it back up.

"Them?" Sabine gently prodded. Ezra sighed, before gesturing to the seat next to him. Sabine walked over to it, not wanting to wake anyone up. Shuffling in the seat, she could feel her nose sting from the alcohol around the bottle, but soon got used to it.

"My parents, friends, everyone." Ezra said with a little rasp to his voice. Sabine saw this, and started to feel a little guilt in her stomach from the same thing he was suffering. "I see them suffering. My parents dead bodies, my friends all either brainwashed or killed. Even old Jho, who I miss almost the most." Ezra was getting everything off his chest, making him feel better.

"I miss all them," Ezra was starting to sob a little, "All of them. I n-never got to thank any of them, or tell my parents I love them." A tear went down his cheek

"And you wish you could." Sabine finished for him, getting a choked up 'yes' from him. From that answer, Sabine looked at him and saw a different side to Ezra. Instead of the flirty, sarcastic and comedic kid, he was a solemn, emotional and grief stricken man. One that had seen too much hardship and sadness, rather than a happy and joyful life of a kid.

"So why are you up?" Ezra asked, but Sabine looked down at his question. In truth she was a little scared, telling Ezra about herself. She was always a reticent person when it came to backstories and pasts, but Ezra did reveal his woes to her.

"I...I don't know if I could tell you." Sabine spoke, a little hesitant, making her think deep on this decision. "It's just hard to talk about my past. To an extent, it was just as bad as yours."

So Sabine sat there, for a minute or two, before she felt something push against her hand. Looking at it, it was the shot glass filled with the whiskey. Gazing at Ezra, she saw him with a soft smile to his face.

"Here," he offered, giving the glass a little push, "It calms me down when I have a lot on my mind."

Sabine looked at the glass, contemplating on whether or not she should take it. Deciding to take it, she gingerly took the glass in her hand. It was a little heavier than she had expected for such a small glass, but she did raise it to her lips. It didn't sting her nose like it did Ezra's, so she took the whole thing in her mouth. Now, she wasn't as experienced as Ezra, so when it hit ehr tongue and went down her throat, she gagged a little. The taste was a little overwhelming for her, so when it was down her throat she coughed a little from the taste.

"First time?" Ezra asked, not teasing or jokingly, but just pointing it out. Sabine, after her small coughing fit, looked over top Ezra with a look of embarrassment and a little red, from both the shame and the drink.

"...Maybe…" she mumbled, hiding her face so Ezra couldn't see the look on it. Expecting him to laugh at her, she didn't want to see it, it would probably make her feel worse than she is already.

"It's okay," Ezra said, putting a hand on her shoulder, "I was the same when I first started. Difference was I spit it up the first time, so nice for not doing that." He was speaking honestly, making Sabine look up and smile.

"Thanks," Sabine whispered, still not used to the taste, "It did help."

"I'm here for you. Whenever your ready." Ezra said, his hand never leaving her shoulder.

She took a deep breath, then spoke, "The reason I'm awake," another deep breath, "is nearly the same as you." She pauses a little, collecting her thoughts, "I see my family and friends, but I see them with angered and disgusted faces. They look at me, and call me a disgrace. Telling me they have dishonored the clan, yelling and beating me as they speak."

The memories and flashes of that dream come to Sabine's mind, and she does something Ezra had never seen: she let out a small sob, before a tear trickled down her cheek. Ezra was a little shocked, he always saw her as the strong and fearless warrior, but it seems even Sabine had nightmares that got her. It seemed no one was invincible in their mind.

Not wanting to see any more of this sad side of Sabine, Ezra shuffled a little closer and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. Pulling her into him, she accepted and just leaned into him, letting some more tears fall down. Usually, she would try and hide these tears so no one would see her as weak, but alone with just Ezra allowed her to show the true side of her. She was scared, and she needed help.

"It's alright Sabs," Ezra soothed to her, rubbing her shoulder, "I'm here for you. It's gonna be fine."

A choked sob escaped her lips, followed by some raspy words, "I don't know if they are. If I let tears go now, I'll never forgive myself."

Ezra gave her gentle squeeze before talking, "Sabine, crying does not make you weak, it makes you something else."

"W-What?" Sabine asked with a little disbelieving in her voice.

Ezra took a breath before saying, "It makes you human. It makes you alive. Most importantly, it makes you feel free."

Sabine to his words to heart, realizing so much of it was true. She remembered how much her family told her never to cry, since it would only show weakness. However by doing so, she would only bottle everything up and poison herself. All those years of never releasing anything were catching up to her, filling her stomach up with some vile energy.

With all of it welling up inside her, Sabine did something she hadn't in such a long time. She put her face into Ezra's chest, and let it all out of her system. All the years of having to store them in her gut had made her a mess on the inside, but right now they were pushing forward. Unlike other times, she decided not to stop them, and let them fall freely.

It was a quiet moment, minus Sabine crying and Ezra whispering soothing words to her, but nothing else was heard. For a couple of minutes, Sabine just let out all of her pent up frustrations and emotions. For a couple of minutes, Ezra just held Sabine close to him and gently rubbed her arm. For a couple of minutes, both were growing more and more comfortable with each other.

After some time, Sabine started to hush up her crying. Soon, it was barely an audible sob, but Sabine didn't leave Ezra's chest, not that Ezra complained.

With some small sniffles, she slowly raised her head from his chest and whispered, "E-Ezra…"

Ezra looked down to meet her chestnut eyes, "Sabine."

Without any sort of warning, Sabine leaned up and connected her lips to Ezra's. Ezra was honestly surprised for a second, but soon melted into the kiss. He could feel the passion and emotions behind hers, letting him know this wasn't some impulse, but a true kiss. One with love behind it.

Unfortunately they needed to breath, and they parted with some deeper breathing.

"Thank you." Sabine whispered, leaning into his chest. Ezra just smiled and put both arms around her and pulled her close. "Don't leave me." was the last thing Sabine said, before she fell to sleep inside his arms.

Ezra chuckled a little bit, before whispering back, "Wouldn't dream of it."


End file.
